Tuesday, August 31, 2010

HMS Stalkerwas an Attacker class escort carrier that took part in the Salerno landings in 1943, the invasion of the south of France and the liberation of Greece in 1944 and the liberations of Penang, Rangoon and Malaya during 1945

HMS Searcherwas an Attacker class escort carrier that spent most of her carrier operating off the Norwegian coast, although she also took part in the invasion of southern France and the liberation of Greece

Monday, August 30, 2010

The Focke-Wulf Fw 191 was a medium bomber designed in response to the German Air Ministry's 'Bomber B' specification of 1939, but that was let down by the failure of the engines it was designed to use and that never entered production.

Friday, August 27, 2010

A thoughtful if often rather melancholy account of one man's experiences of the British Army during the Second World War, encompassing time spent in England, in the Western Desert and in Greece, cooperating with the partisans, focusing more on his views on war and the British at war than on the battles he took part in. [read full review]

1809 Thunder on the Danube: Napoleon's Defeat of the Habsburgs, Volume I: Abensberg, John H. Gill.

The first volume in a monumental account of the 1809 war between France and the Habsburg Empire, Napoleon's last victorious war, looking at the reasons behind the Austrian declaration of war and the early battles that ended the Austrian invasion of Bavaria and paved the war for Napoleon's campaign around Vienna. [read full review]

A look at the impressively large US Army Corps of Engineers - the selection of its men, their training and equipment and the role its combat engineer battalions played in the successful Allied campaigns in North Africa and Europe. [read full review]

A look at the campaigns fought by the German armed forces during 1943, the year that saw the initiative permanently slip from their hands, with the failure of the Kursk offensive, defeat in the Atlantic, Tunisia, Sicily and southern Italy and the collapse of fascist power in Italy. [read full review]

The Military Life and Times of Sir Miles Dempsey, GBE KCB DSO MC - Monty's Army Commander, Peter Rostron.

A much needed full-length biography of a commander who led a corps during the invasions of Sicily and southern Italy and the British Second Army on D-Day and during the campaign in Normandy, the break-out from Normandy, the advance across France, at Arnhem and the crossing of the Rhine [read full review]

A look at the series of six battles between German commerce raiders and British and Australian cruisers and armed merchants cruisers during 1940 and 1941, a period that saw the converted German warships perform surprisingly well against more powerful opponents while at the same time taking a toll of Allied shipping [read full review]

HMS Pursuerwas an Attacker class escort carrier that served on convoy escort duty as well as taking part in the April 1944 attack on Tirpitz, the D-Day landings, the liberations of the south of France and of Greece, before ending the war with the East Indies Fleet

HMS Fencer was an Attacker class escort carrier that served with the Home Fleet in 1944, sinking three U-boats at the start of May, before joining the British Pacific Fleet as a ferry carrier during 1945

HMS Battlerwas an Attacker class escort carrier that served on convoy escort duty between Britain and Africa in 1943, took part in the Salerno landings, and spent 1944 operating with the Eastern Fleet then the East Indies Fleet, before becoming a deck landing training carrier in 1945

HMS Attackerwas the name ship for the Attacker class of escort carriers. She took part in the landings at Salerno in 1943 and in the south of France and Greece in 1944, before moving to the Far East in time to take part in the liberation of Penang and the re-occupation of Singapore

The Grumman TBF/ TBM Avenger was the US Navy's only front line torpedo bomber from the late summer of 1942 until the end of the Second World War, and was a sturdy robust aircraft that accounted for a large part of the Japanese fleet, as well as serving as the British Fleet Air Arm's main torpedo bomber in the later years of the war.

The Grumman TBF-1 Avenger was the first production version of the aircraft, and the only one to be built by Grumman.

The Grumman XTBF-2 Avenger was a single prototype for a version of the aircraft powered by the 1,900hp Wright R-2600-10 engine.

The Eastern TBM-1 Avenger was the first version of that aircraft produced by the Eastern Aircraft Division of General Motors, and was produced in larger numbers than the Grumman TBF-1.

The Eastern TBM-3 Avenger was the second major version of the Avenger torpedo bomber to enter production, and had a more powerful engine than the earlier TBF-1/ TBM-1

The Eastern TBM-3E Avenger was the last major wartime production version of the aircraft, and was significantly lighter than the -3E, giving it the same performance as the original TBF-1.

The Eastern TBM-3S Avenger was an anti-submarine warfare aircraft produced after the Second World War and that was normally paired with the TBM-3W early warning radar aircraft in hunter-killer anti-submarine teams

The Eastern TBM-3W Avenger was an airborne early warning radar aircraft developed during the Second World War but that only entered service in May 1946.

The Eastern XTBM-4 Avenger was the designation given to three prototypes of an improved version of the Avenger that were produced in 1945

The Grumman Tarpon was the designation originally given to the TBF/ TBM Avenger in British service

The Avenger Mk.I was the British designation for the Grumman TBF-1 and Eastern TBM-1 from January 1944, replacing the earlier Tarpon I

The Avenger Mk.II was the British designation for the Grumman TBF-1C and Eastern TBM-1C from January 1944, replacing the earlier Tarpon II.

The Avenger Mk.III was the British designation for the Eastern TBM-3 and TBM-3E from January 1944, replacing the earlier Tarpon III

The Avenger AS Mk.4 was the British designation given a version of the TBM-3S anti-submarine warfare aircraft that served with the Fleet Air Arm from 1953.

HMS Furiouswas laid down as a light battlecruiser during the First World War but achieved most fame as an aircraft carrier during the Second World War, spending much of her time operating in the Mediterranean and off the coast of Norway as well as in the Atlantic and on the Arctic convoys.

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Looks at the development of both aircraft, their entry in Israeli and Arab service and the actual fighting during the Six Day War, a short enough conflict to allow the author to look at every clash between the Mirage III and MiG 21 [read full review]

A look at the impressive achievements of the Imperial War Graves Commission in building and maintaining tens and thousands of cemeteries and memorials to the dead of the two World Wars and a look at commemoration of the dead in the post-war world, including the National Arboretum [read full review]

Written for the 250th anniversary of this battle, won at night, in a storm, and in a difficult bay on the French coast, Tracy looks at the wider context of a battle that ended a real threat of French invasion, with sections on the strategy of naval warfare in the period, the career of Admiral Hawke as well as on the battle itself [read full review]

A compelling account of the author's time at M.I.9, the section of the British secret service that was dedicated to supporting the networks that helped Allied servicemen escape from occupied Europe while fighting the Gestapo and treacherous double agents [read full review]

An account of the experiences of the British 3rd and American 29th infantry divisions during the fighting in Normandy, looking at their experiences on Omaha and Sword beaches and their roles in the capture of St. Lo and Caen, two early targets that took more than a month to reach [read full review]

A study of the air war over the part of the British coast facing directly towards Germany across the North Sea, looking at the German attacks early in the war, off-shore activities, the few late German raids and the V-1 and V-2 attacks [read full review]

Victory at Poitiers: The Black Prince and the Medieval Art of War, Christian Teutsch.

A look at the military career of the Black Prince, focusing on the lessons he could have learnt from his early experiences, especially at Crecy, and how he may have used them to win his great victory at Poitiers. [read full review]

HMS Patrollerwas a Ruler class escort carrier that saw little active service, being used as a ferry carrier under US Navy control early in 1945 before returning to British control to carry out similar duties.

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

On the Deck or in the Drink, Flying with the Royal Navy 1952-1964, Lieutenant Brian R. Allen RN.

The autobiography of a pilot in the post-war Fleet Air Arm, recounting his experiences flying a wide range of aircraft from old wartime Avengers to the Fairey Gannet and some alarming early helicopters [read full review]

A detailed but still coherent and readable account of the desperate fighting around and in Berlin in April and May 1945 (and within the two high commands), looking at events from both the Soviet and German sides and supported by some useful maps [read full review]

A lavishly illustrated look at one of the strongest fortresses of its time, the home of the Knights of St. John until its fall to the Turks in 1522, tracing the development of the fortifications as the development of the cannon made the medieval walls dangerously vulnerable to attack. [read full review]

This third part of a history of No.72 Fighter Squadron takes us from the immediate post-war period to the end of the squadron's existence as a fixed-wing fighter unit, a period that saw its pilots adapt to the new jet age [read full review]

The very readable autobiography of a pre-war RAF volunteer, tracing his progress from the workshops at Cranwell to the cockpit of a Hurricane during the battle of France and the battle of Britain, long patrols over the Irish Sea and finally a career as an instructor. [read full review]

A collection of frontline accounts from a wide range of participants in the two recent wars in Iraq and the current war in Afghanistan that makes a valuable contribution to the literate on the nature of combat, as well as being published for a good cause in Help for Heroes. [read full review]

HMS Shahwas a Ruler class escort carrier that served in the Far East, spending most of 1944 on anti-submarine patrols and general escort duties, before taking part in several major operations during 1945.

HMS Athelingwas a Ruler class escort carrier that served alongside HMS Illustrious in the Bay of Bengal for a short period of time in 1944 before being loaned to the US Navy to serve as a ferry carrier in 1945.

HMS Reaperwas a Ruler class escort carrier that served on convoy escort duties in the Atlantic and Mediterranean in the second half of 1944 before being loaded to the US Navy to search as a ferry carrier at the start of 1945.

HMS Smiterwas a Ruler class escort carrier that saw little service during the Second World War, accompanying a small number of Atlantic convoys in 1944, before sailing to the Far East too late to see any action

HMS Trumpeterwas a Ruler class escort carrier that saw an unusual level of front-line service, taking part in twelve months of operations off the Norwegian coast between the summers of 1944 and 1945, before moving to the Far East